T

he Torah is like life, full 
of contradictions. 
Moses begins by 
stepping out to make his big 
announcement. It is 
his birthday; he is 120, 
and he makes himself 
sound very old and 
decrepit but that seems 
impossible.
As Rashi points out, 
we are told that Moses 
was full of vigor until 
his death. Still, there is 
a lingering sense that 
this hale and hearty old 
fellow is announcing his 
infirmity.
The next contra-
diction is more 
troublesome. “Don’t worry,” 

Moses tells Joshua. “You will 
enter the land and God will be 
with you. Keep your chin up 
because you are going to bring 
this people to the land. 
God is walking in front 
of you. He will be with 
you; He won’t let you go 
or leave you.” (31:7-8).
God, on the other 
hand, is planning the 
exact opposite. The 
people will stray to other 
gods, and God will be 
furious. “The people 
leave Me and break My 
contract and I will leave 
them and hide My face 
from them” (31:16-17).
Ah, but the 
contradictions are the warp 

and woof of the Torah tapestry. 
The people are holy, but sinful. 
They act like slaves, but they 
merit the theophany at Sinai. 
They eagerly accept God’s 
commandments, yet they go 
after other gods.
They want to hear Moses 
because hearing from God 
directly is too much, but they 
challenge Moses’ leadership. 
They cry in slavery; they 
complain in freedom.
What is wrong with them? 
We can cope with complexity, 
even unpredictability; but this 
complete inconsistency just 
makes no sense.
Among all these con-
tradictions, what is our future, 
our present, our past? We are 
ashamed that we have strayed, 
oppressed buy the fearful 
conviction that we will stray 
again. Yet we are buoyed by 
the hope that we may repent 
and be forgiven. These feelings 

seem mutually contradictory, 
but the contradictions are 
part of our religious outlook. 
God, Who has seen us break 
our side of the contract and 
sees us repeating our error 
in the future, has already 
given us the antidote for our 
desperate malady. The Divine 
presence will hide from us, 
playing a peek-a-boo game 
that reassures us even as it 
leaves us trembling in fear of 
abandonment.
Vayelech. “
And he went/will 
go.” Our future is in our past. 
As you will have come to shul 
this Shabbat, be sure to come 
again next week and hear the 
song that Moses taught to keep 
God with us then, now and 
forever. 

Joe Lewis was a teacher in 

Congregation Beth Shalom’s religious 

school. This article originally appeared 

in the JN on Sept. 25, 1998.

SPIRIT

So Many 
Contradictions

TORAH PORTION

Joe Lewis

Parshat 

Vayelech: 

Deuteronomy 

31:1-30;

Isaiah

55:6-56:8.

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